WetLandcare in the Hawkesbury
WetLandcare in the Hawkesbury
Caring for wetlands across the Hawkesbury and greater western Sydney with Landcare, StreamWatch and biodiversity surveys. WetLandcare also monitors land use impacts from neighbouring properties.
Building our Future -
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The issue
Wetlands in the Hawkesbury and western Sydney region are a significant part of the landscape. Unfortunately with increasing threats of development and land uses, many wetland wonderlands are becoming no more than farm dams. WetLandcare has begun at a wetland call Bushells Lagoon, which was illegally drained dry in Feb 2018 and then, trenched without permission as soon as some rain filled it up again in May last year. WetLandcare now meets monthly at Bushells to carry out these actions in an attempt to gather scientific information on the site, encourage neighbours to get involved and keep a watchful eye on any negatively impacts land uses from the surrounding area.
The solution
The solution started small with StreamWatch testing on a monthly basis, which was actually initiated before the main water extraction and trenching activities took place. This was heartbreaking for the community, and as such we set out to repair the wrong doings on the wetland, whilst builder a bigger awareness for the significance of the site. Known as a wondrous site for migratory birds, an Endangered Ecological Community as a Freshwater Wetland in the Sydney Basin and, the site to go to for birdwatching groups - WetLandcare is trying to re-build the respect and on-ground attention given to this (and other) wetlands.
The impact
The impact of this group is that it is the first of its kind in the Hawkesbury, and maybe even for western Sydney. Other wetlands in the area are planned to be included on a Network of Wetlands, under the WetLandcare model. Ultimately, WetLandcare is hoped to encourage smarter farming for neighbouring land users across all wetlands in the region.
Learnings
The difficulty we have with implementing WetLandcare across such old land holdings across the Hawkesbury is that the current use of the wetlands has been engrained since the colony began 200 years ago. The Hawkesbury has some of the first land grants in the Sydney area, and landholders remain utilising these natural icons in a manner which they have always done, which does not always recognise them for the biodiversity, functional or systematic role they play across the landscape.
Key facts
- Western Sydney is a hot spot for wetlands across the world! Currently we cannot keep up with the impacts negating their condition for international and locally endemic wetland birds, fish, amphibians and other animals, who rely on this ecosystem to survive and reproduce.